Clinical trials for advancing innovative interventions for neurodegenerative diseases

Expected Outcome: This topic aims at supporting activities that are enabling or contributing to one or several expected impacts of destination “Tackling diseases and reducing disease burden”. To that end, proposals under this topic should aim to deliver results that are directed at, tailored towards and contributing to all the following expected outcomes: The scientific and clinical communities make effective use of state-of-the-art knowledge, data, technologies, tools, methods, best practices, and trainings to underpin and complement the development of innovative interventions aimed at more effective treatments for neurodegenerative diseases. The scientific and clinical communities benefit from the exchange of data, knowledge and best practices, thereby strengthening their collaboration in the EU, the Associated Countries and beyond. The scientific and clinical communities make wide use of relevant databases and/or integrate them with existing infrastructures for storage and sharing of collected data according to FAIR [1] principles, thereby encouraging further use of the data. Policymakers, funders, scientific and clinical communities, patient organisations, regulators, and other relevant bodies are informed of the research advances made and the requirements for a widespread implementation of the innovative therapeutic interventions and complementary approaches. Patients and caregivers are constructively engaged with the research, ensuring that their needs are catered for, with the aim of tangibly benefitting from the interventions. Scope: Neurodegenerative diseases are a high burden for patients, caregivers, health systems and society. Given the limitations with current therapeutic solutions, including that they primarily address symptoms rather than underlying causes and can have serious side effects, together with the increasing prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases in an aging population, there is a huge need to develop more innovative, safer and more effective therapeutic solutions for these diseases. To further enhance their safety and effectiveness, the therapeutic solution based on an active substance should be combined/complemented with another multidisciplinary approach (e.g. lifestyle changes, cognitive training, rehabilitation therapies). Together this innovative intervention should lead to an improved quality of life and reduce the societal impact of these diseases. Rare neurodegenerative diseases are excluded [2] . Proposals should address most of the following aspects: Perform rigorous early-stage [3] clinical trials into the safety a…